Dark Helmet Tattoo co. 28120 Jefferson Avenue, Temecula, CA 92590

"TLDR Kevin's a nice guy and may be a talented realism portrait tattooer but you shouldn't choose him if you're looking for a unique custom design, and he is absolutely horrible to try to communicate with. I was really nervous for my appointment. I had been getting a lot of tattoos from many different artists in the area throughout the year prior, but this one felt different, much more stressful. I had selected Kevin for this particular design because I thought he would be able to create the galaxy type design I was asking for, and the way he could make things look like they glow, I even told him this when I was booking the appointment. I wasn't nervous about the tattoo, but I wasn't sure what to expect from Kevin. He had recently gone through a personal ordeal and was very publicly emotional on his social media, so I was worried about it being a somewhat uncomfortable and tension filled experience. I should have taken this as a sign to go somewhere else from the very beginning. I don't know why I didn't. But it didn't end up being uncomfortable. Kevin was actually very entertaining and funny. We spent the whole appointment discussing our families and all the pop culture we love. He also talked a lot about how henever closed the shop or stopped tattooing through quarantine, and bragged about all the things he bought, including an RV, with the PPP loans he claimed. Make of that what you will. The first red flag I actually should've noticed was the difficulty in getting a response from him. And the final red flag should have been when he didn't draw up an original design for me, but instead just traced the inspiration pic I had sent. I had him make some changes, but I was still very nervous at this point and it felt like I was putting him out, so they were very minimal changes. This is when I should've just left, but stupid me continued anyway. When he finished the tattoo he said the lights would lighten up and the darks would darken, and that he always offers free touchups. After a month healed I reached out to Kevin because the lights actually got darker, and what was supposed to be a more black and white type design (with colorful galaxy accents) ended up looking mostly just green and blue, and very dark. I asked if it was possible to lighten up the light side at all, he didn't respond. I tried again a week later and he responded that we could, and then I asked if I could make an appointment, but again he didn't respond. I made many attempts throughout many months, to allow Kevin an opportunity to make the tattoo something more like I had originally asked for. A year later I reached out again, and once again no response. After a couple weeks I followed up and asked specifically to just tell me "no" if it wasn't something he wanted to do, but he actually responded this time and told me to send an email. Which I did. And I still got NO response. I sent 3 total emails between Dec. 10 and Jan. 17, and he never responded. At this point I'm clearly not going back there, so now I'll have to find someone else who's willing to attempt to improve what Kevin did. I have a lot of tattoos, this is the only one that came out significantly different than what I had asked for. It is also the only one I had any issues with scarring and the healing process. I have used adhesive bandages like saniderm and derma shield on more than 30 separate occasions over the past few years and this was the only tattoo that still felt very tight and itchy for many weeks after removing the adhesive bandage. I also have noticably textured scaring on the lighter areas of the tattoo. I am disappointed in the tattoo and with the lack of communication from Kevin. I don't have a problem paying $200+/hour for good work, but this in no way feels worth the $500+ I paid. Especially considering I'll now have to pay more to try to fix it, and there's no way to make it like the original design over what Kevin already did, without getting it lasered."

"All the artists there are easy to work with, friendly, and down to earth. The environment is also like no other shop. These are just a handful of pieces that I got done by Hale who is an excellent artist. Not only does he communicate well to turn your ideas into great tattoos, but he also has an entire book of flash that is full of great original work. Would highly recommend this place to anyone."

"I saw Hale (@TroubledInk) post a sketch on his IG Story that really caught my attention. Messaged him that I wanted to get it tattooed and he immediately booked me within the same week! He is an awesome artist and super chill guy to get tattooed by. I'm very proud to have a piece of his work and to be able to show it off everyday! He's definitely gained a loyal customer!"

"Definitely the best tattoo shop around!! Very welcoming & friendly a safe place to put amazing art on your body!! Hale is the best of the best if you need an artist there check him out, he has done majority of all my tattoos including my wonderful back piece that we’re currently working on!!"

"My artist Mario moved to this tattoo shop and I must say I really love the place. All the memorabilia in the shop is awesome. Love my artist, and the others in the shop I met are cool as well. Definitely recommend this shop if you are looking for a great tattoo."